World

Iranian delegation leaves COP28 in protest at Israeli attendance

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The Islamic Republic of Iran’s delegation to the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) has left the venue of the international event in the United Arab Emirates in protest at the presence of Israel’s representative and the occupying regime’s ongoing genocidal war in the besieged Gaza Strip.

The Iranian delegation, headed by Energy Minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian, declined to attend the UN’s COP28 climate summit in Dubai on Friday due to the presence of Israeli president Isaac Herzog.

“Iran regards the political and biased presence of the fake Zionist regime in the climate change summit, which aims to evaluate the performance of the international community in facing climate change, as contrary to the objectives of this conference, and vacates the conference venue in protest,” Mehrabian said before leaving Dubai.

Western media published photos of Emirati President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan meeting with his Israeli counterpart on the sidelines of the UAE-hosted COP28, which gathered around 140 leaders for the world’s biggest climate summit.

Israel’s Jerusalem Post newspaper, which is close to the far-right coalition cabinet of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had earlier revealed that the purpose of Herzog’s visit to the UAE was to use the “diplomatic space” available in the international climate summit to consolidate Tel Aviv’s position in the war on Gaza and the release of Israeli captives.

Mehrabian said he would later release the statement he was set to deliver at the summit.

Iran’s state media officially announced on Thursday that President Ebrahim Raeisi would not attend the UN’s COP28 climate summit in Dubai due to the invitation of the Israeli president to the summit. 

The commencement of the international summit coincided with the Israeli resumption of its brutal aggression against the Gaza Strip after a weeklong truce expired earlier on Friday, leaving dozens of Palestinians dead or injured.

Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7 after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas waged the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the occupying entity in response to the Israeli regime’s decades-long campaign of bloodletting and devastation against Palestinians.

Tel Aviv also blocked water, food, and electricity to Gaza, plunging the coastal strip into a humanitarian crisis.

More than 15,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, have been killed in the Israeli strikes.

The Israeli violence in Gaza has also raised tensions in the West Bank, where nearly 240 Palestinians have been killed by soldiers or settlers since October 7, according to the Ramallah-based Palestinian health ministry.

The truce saw the release of 105 Israeli captives held in Gaza and 240 Palestinian prisoners.

The ceasefire had allowed some humanitarian aid into Gaza but the aid supplies were far below what is needed, according to aid workers.

Middle East

At least 36 Palestinians martyred in resumed Israeli war

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The following is the latest updates on resumed fighting in Gaza Strip: 

Hamas says Israel, US responsible for truce expiration:

Hamas top official Osama Hamdan said the “responsibility for not extending the ceasefire lies with the Zionist regime and the United States”.

He said the Palestinian resistance was seriously looking for a ceasefire and is still pursuing it.

Gaza death toll in few hours rises to 36:

The heath ministry spokesperson in Gaza Ashraf al-Qudra confirmed that the death toll had risen to 32 Palestinians. 

Qudra said the dead included ten people killed in al-Maghazi in central Gaza, nine in Rafah in the South, and five in Gaza City in the north – hours after the truce ended at 7 a.m. local time (0500 GMT) .
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Another journalist martyred in Gaza:

Palestinian sources announced the martyrdom of “Abdullah Darwish”, a photographer and reporter of the “Al-Aqsa” satellite channel after the resumption attacks by the Zionist regime on the Gaza Strip. So far, as many as 71 reporters have been killed in the Israeli regime airstrikes.
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Six killed in Rafah strike, as explosions heard across Gaza:

In the resumed airstrikes by the Zionist regime on different areas of Gaza, 6 people were martyred and dozens were injured.

Israeli regime airstrikes have hit southern Gaza, including the community of Abassan east of the town of Khan Younis, Hamas officials say. Another strike hit a home northwest of Gaza City.

Loud, continuous explosions are heard coming from the Gaza Strip, and black smoke billows from the territory.

The Gaza health ministry says three people have been killed in Israeli air raids in Rafah, in the Strip’s south.

Israeli military says resumed fighting in Gaza 

The Israeli regime army has issued a statement saying that it has resumed its military campaign in the Gaza Strip, claiming that Hamas violated the truce by firing into occupied territory.

International mediators, including Qatar, Egypt and the US, were on Friday pushing for another extension of the Gaza truce ahead of its expiration at 7am local time (05:00 GMT), Al Jazeera reported. 

With no extension announced by the deadline, there were reports of gunfire and explosions in the north of the Gaza Strip, while the Zionist regime’s military said it had intercepted a rocket from Gaza.

An AFP journalist reported Israeli airstrikes, artillery fire seen in Gaza City the Zionist regime media said.

Photos on social media claim to show a recent strike, 

Meanwhile, Lebanese Al-Mayadeen network reported fighting between the Palestinian resistance fighters and the Zionist regime military in the northwest of Gaza.

Fierce clashes were going on between the Resistance fighters and the occupying Israeli forces in the northwest of Gaza, Al-Mayadeen said.

According to the report, Resistance fighters confronted the tanks of the Zionist regime in that area. 

The temporary ceasefire between Hamas and the Zionist regime ended today as deadline passed.

The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, launched an operation against the Zionist Israeli regime on October 7 in response to more than seven decades of occupation of Palestine and nearly two decades of blockade of Gaza and imprisonment and torture of thousands of Palestinians. It killed more than 1,200 Zionists soldiers and settlers and took more than 220 of them to the enclave as prisoners. 

In retaliation to Hamas’s operation, which was called the al-Aqsa Storm operation, the Zionist regime launched heavy attacks against Gaza and put the enclave under total siege. 

More than 15,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Zionist regime’s attacks, while tens of thousands of others have been injured.

MNA

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Ranveer Singh honoured at Red Sea Int’l Film Festival, thanks Johnny Depp in speech

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The Indian actor was one of the three recipients of this year’s Honorary Yusr Awards at the Jeddah-based film gala, which opened on Thursday.

Published Date – 04:01 PM, Fri – 1 December 23


Ranveer Singh honoured at Red Sea Int’l Film Festival, thanks Johnny Depp in speech


New Delhi: Actor Ranveer Singh received career honour for his contribution to cinema at the third edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival and thanked “master of transformation”, Hollywood actor Johnny Depp, in his acceptance speech.

The Indian actor was one of the three recipients of this year’s Honorary Yusr Awards at the Jeddah-based film gala, which opened on Thursday. Hollywood actor Diane Kruger and Saudi actor-writer Abdullah Al-Sadhan were the other two personalities to be honoured with the award.

Hollywood star Sharon Stone presented Singh with the honour. In his speech, Singh expressed his admiration for Depp, who was also present at the opening ceremony.

“I’m going off-script for a moment here. Wow, one of my screen idols is in the house. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr Johnny Depp. My good sir, I have followed your work since ‘Edward Scissorhands’ and ‘What’s Eating Gilbert Grape’.

“What an honour to be receiving this award in your presence. Thank you for everything you have unknowingly taught me about the craft, sir. Master of Transformation, versatility, is something that I am inspired by you,” the “Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahani” star said.

The official X handle of the film extravaganza shared Singh and Depp’s picture.

“Live from the opening ceremony of the third edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival; honoree Ranveer Singh poses alongside Hollywood star Johnny Depp. #RedSeaIFF23 #YourStoryYourFestival,” the post read.

Other Indian cinema personalities who will attend the festival include filmmaker Karan Johar and actors Katrina Kaif, Frieda Pinto.

According to the festival’s website, Yusr Awards recognise both emerging and established voices across the formats of fiction, documentary, and animation.

The Red Sea International Film Festival will conclude on December 9.

India

SC asks Allahabad HC to ‘urgently’ hear plea against UP Govt’s decision to take over land of Muhammad Ali Jauhar University

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On January 28, the Uttar Pradesh government cancelled the lease of Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Training and Research Institute and decided to take back over 13,000 square metres of land granted to Samajwadi party leader Azam Khan.

Published Date – 03:30 PM, Fri – 1 December 23


SC asks Allahabad HC to ‘urgently’ hear plea against UP Govt’s decision to take over land of Muhammad Ali Jauhar University


New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Allahabad High Court to ‘urgently’ list the plea filed by Maulana Muhammad Ali Jauhar University against the Uttar Pradesh government’s decision to take back the land alloted to the University.

On January 28, the Uttar Pradesh government cancelled the lease of Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Training and Research Institute and decided to take back over 13,000 square metres of land granted to Samajwadi party leader Azam Khan.

A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and also comprising justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra granted liberty to the petitioner to go to Allahabad High Court with his plea for interim relief, clarifying that it shall be considered on its own merits.

The court also clarified that petitions shall be shown as “urgent” and must be listed before the acting Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court.

The top court noted that the judgement in the case was reserved some time ago. One of the judges who reserved the matter was transferred to the High Court at Calcutta and thus the proceedings would be heard before a fresh bench.

After the decision of the Yogi cabinet on January 28, the government cancelled the lease of Rs 100 per annum and ordered to take the institute’s building and land, with an area of about 13,000 square meters, under the government control. The district administration sealed the Jauhar Shodh Sansthan campus and handed it over to the minority department.

Former cabinet minister Azam Khan had taken land for Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Training and Research Institute on lease for 100 rupees annually for 33 years during the Samajwadi Party government regime with the provison that the lease term can be extended twice for 33-33 years.

Middle East

Hamas says Israel, US responsible for truce expiration

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Hamas top official Osama Hamdan said the “responsibility for not extending the ceasefire lies with the Zionist regime and the United States”.

He said the Palestinian resistance was seriously looking for a ceasefire and is still pursuing it.

Meanwhile, according to Press TV, Ezzat al-Rashq, a member of the Hamas political bureau, said, “What Israel did not achieve in the 50 days before the ceasefire, it will not achieve with the continuation of its aggression.”

Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7 after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas waged the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the occupying entity in response to the Israeli regime’s decades-long campaign of bloodletting and devastation against Palestinians.

Tel Aviv also blocked water, food, and electricity to Gaza, plunging the coastal strip into a humanitarian crisis.

More than 15,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, have been killed in the Israeli strikes.

The Israeli violence in Gaza has also raised tensions in the West Bank, where nearly 240 Palestinians have been killed by soldiers or settlers since October 7, according to the Ramallah-based Palestinian health ministry.

The truce saw the release of 105 Israeli captives held in Gaza and 240 Palestinian prisoners.

The ceasefire had allowed some humanitarian aid into Gaza but the aid supplies were far below what is needed, according to aid workers.

MNA

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UNSC unable to call for lasting ceasefire in Gaza

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Rahshan Saglam

Press TV, Istanbul

The UN Security Council held a high level meeting on Wednesday to discuss Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan made a blistering attack on the council for its failure to call for a permanent ceasefire in the besieged Palestinian territory.

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End Of Road For Rahane, Pujara? Report Says Duo's Slots "Now Belong To…"

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Amidst the headline grabbing news on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli missing the white-ball leg of Indian cricket team’s Tour of South Africa, there was another news about two veterans that got lost. Veteran stars Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara were not named in for the two tests that Indian cricket team will play in South Africa. Star pacer Umesh Yadav is also not part of the squad despite the fact that there are question marks over Mohammed Shami‘s availability due to his ‘medical treatment’.

Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara have been long-serving servants of India in Tests. In 85 matches in the longest format, Ajinkya Rahane has 5077 runs at an average of 38.46. He last played a Test match in July in West Indies. Cheteshwar Pujara has so far played 103 Tests and scored 7195    runs at an average of 43.60. He last played a Test in June against Australia.

According to news agency PTI, Ajinkya Rahane, who scored 89 in the World Test Championship final, has probably played his last Test along with Chesteshwar Pujara.

“The two slots that Rahane and Pujara had now belong to KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer. Also, Gill will bat in the middle order and Yashashvi will get a long rope,” PTI quoted a source as saying.

One of the veterans of the game, Rahane has done wonders for India whenever he has been asked to take up the leadership role. The manner in which Rahane led the team in 2019-20 Border-Gavaskar trophy, earned him plenty of plaudits.

But, since that campaign, it was all downhill for the right-handed batter. The BCCI selection committee’s decision to hand him the team’s vice-captaincy for the West Indies series wasn’t a decision that was welcomed by all.

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly expressed his astonishment at the decision, suggesting Ravindra Jadeja would’ve been a better choice for the role.

“I won’t say it’s a step backward. You have been out for 18 months, then you play a Test and you become a vice-captain. I don’t understand the thought process behind it. There is Ravindra Jadeja, who has been there for a long time and a certainty in Test matches, he is a candidate,” Ganguly had told PTI after the Test squad for the Caribbean tour was announced.

India’s squad for Tests: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan (wk), KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Mohd. Shami*, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna.

Note: Mohd. Shami is currently undergoing medical treatment and his availability is subject to fitness.

Topics mentioned in this article

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UK's Killer Nurse Lucy Letby Moved To Cushy Jail With Phone And TV: Report

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UK's Killer Nurse Lucy Letby Moved To Cushy Jail With Phone And TV: Report

Lucy Letby was sentenced in August this year.

Lucy Letby, the former British nurse who was jailed in August this year after she was found guilty of killing seven newborns in a neo-natal unit, has been moved to a cushy private jail with round-the-clock protection. According to The Sun, Letby has her own cell with a shower, a desk, phone and television. The outlet quoted a source as saying that she is being treated with ‘kid gloves’ because of her status. The 33-year-old is serving a whole life sentence for killing seven babies and attempted murder of six others.

The treatment she is receiving – despite the crimes she has committed – is said to be infuriating fellow inmates, The Sun said in its report.

The outlet said that she has been moved from the notoriously tough Low Newton jail in County Durham to the private HMP Bronzefield in Ashford, Surrey.

“Letby seems happy as Larry. She is in a nice cell and on her own. The facilities at Bronzefield are much nicer than most jails, because it’s privately run,” The Sun quoted a source as saying.

“She is with prisoners who have earned more rights to watch TV, spend their cash and have visits. It is a disgrace and it’s no wonder she’s been looking so happy,” the source added.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson of Bronzefield said, “We can’t comment on individual cases.”

Letby is only the fourth woman ever in the UK to get a whole life sentence, which means she will die in jail.

Originally from Hereford in western England, Letby studied nursing at the University of Chester. She graduated in 2011 and started full-time at the Countess of Chester Hospital the following year, joining the neo-natal unit.

In 2015, Letby qualified to work on intensive care babies, which would have allowed her to work with the sickest babies in the unit.

Letby was accused of harming 17 babies, some of them just days old, between June 2015 and June 2016. In the majority of cases she is believed to have injected them with air but prosecutors also accused her of introducing insulin or too much milk.

Among the items found during a search of Letby’s home was a Post-it note on which she wrote: “I don’t deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I’m not good enough to care for them”. “I am evil I did this,” she wrote in capital letters.

Middle East

Iran owns biggest number of merchant ships in Middle East

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In a report on the naval fleets in the Middle East region, the economic analysis of Central Intelligence Agency of America (CIA) revealed that with 942 ships, Iran was the largest maritime trade power in the region in 2022. According to the report, Iran has 32 bulk carriers, 31 container ships, 83 oil tankers, 393 general cargo ships and 403 ships of other types in 2022.

Iran had the largest number of merchant ships in 2022 among the 12 countries in the Middle East. Iran stood well above with 306 ships above the second country. 

Iran owns biggest number of merchant ships in Middle East

Iran’s number of ships is more than twice that of Saudi Arabia. The CIA has announced the number of Saudi ships in 2022 was 413 and has introduced this country as the third maritime trade power in the Middle East region. Bahrain with 190 ships and Kuwait with 166 ships stood in fourth and fifth places, respectively.

Qatar with 123 ships, Iraq with 75 ships, Oman with 57 ships, Lebanon with 49 ships, Jordan with 35 ships, Yemen with 30 ships, and Syria with 22 shipswere the sixth to twelfth, respectively.

The total number of operating commercial ships in the Middle East last year was 2,738, and more than one-third of these ships, equivalent to 34%, belonged to Iran.

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We Will "Entirely Secure" Pak, Bangladesh Borders In 2 Years: Amit Shah

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We Will Entirely Secure Pakistan, Bangladesh Borders In 2 Years: Amit Shah

Amit Shah was speaking on the occasion of BSF’s 59th Raising Day celebrations

Hazaribag (Jharkhand):

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said India’s two major borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh will be completely secured in the next two years, with work underway to plug gaps in about 60 km stretch along these two fronts. Shah was speaking after taking salute from a ceremonial parade of the Border Security Force (BSF) on the occasion of its 59th Raising Day celebrations here.

The minister said the Narendra Modi government has fenced and plugged gaps in about 560 km of the India-Pakistan and India-Bangladesh borders in the last nine years since it came to power at the Centre.

He said all the gaps in these two borders on India’s western and eastern flank respectively are being plugged and work in only about 60 km is continuing.

In the next two years we will entirely secure these two borders, Shah said.

The two borders– 2,290 km of the India-Pakistan International Border and 4,096 km of the India-Bangladesh border– are marked by long riverine, mountainous and marshy areas where it is very difficult to erect fences and hence the BSF and other agencies use technical gadgets to check infiltration.

“I firmly believe that a country cannot develop and prosper if its borders are not secure…the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has led the country to the moon with the Chandrayaan mission, G20 Summit and brought the economy from the 11th to the fifth spot, and this was all possible due to our forces deployed for securing the borders like the BSF,” he said.

“You, the BSF, are the essential pillar of this journey,” the minister told the BSF personnel at the ‘Meru’ training camp here.

“I believe that the border fence does not alone protect the country, it only helps in rendering this task. It is the brave BSF jawan who does this task,” he said.

The border force, about 2.65 lakh in strength, was raised on December 1, 1965, and is primarily tasked to guard the over 6,386 km-long Indian fronts with Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The home minister asserted that whenever a BJP government took the reins of power in the country, border security was prioritised, from the government of former PM A B Vajpayee to the Modi government.

While Atal Ji’s (Atal Bihari Vajpayee) government brought a “integrated” approach for border security, the Modi government assimilated security, development and democratic processes along with strong infrastructure and initiation of welfare measures for the local population living on the front, he said.

“We strengthened rail, road, waterways and telephone communication connectivity apart from land trade,” he said.

The home minister said his government created 452 new border posts, 510 observation towers, got electricity connection to 637 borders posts while 500 such facilities were linked with piped water across various fronts over the last nine years.

Talking about Left Wing Extremism (LWE), Shah said the country was close to eliminating this armed and violent movement being carried out by Maoist cadres.

In the last ten years, he said, the incidents of Naxal violence have gone down by 52 per cent, deaths in these incidents declined by 70 per cent and the number of affected police stations have come down from 495 to 176.

“The last strike against LWE by forces like the BSF, CRPF and ITBP is in the process. We are determined to end Naxalism in the country,” he said.

The minister added that as many as 199 new security forces camps were established in the LWE affected areas over the last ten years.

“I am sure we will win this battle,” he said.

In the last ten years of the Modi government, we have been able to win the battle in the “hotspots” of Jammu and Kashmir, LWE and insurgency in the north east and the security forces have been able to establish their domination in Jammu and Kashmir, he said. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)